NGC/IC Project Restoration Effort

===== NGC 4471 is apparently one of the two stars flanking Schmidt's estimated position given in AN 64, 1, 1865 (my thanks to Wolfgang for digging out this paper). This is one of four "very faint and small objects" in the vicinity of M 49 that Schmidt found and measured in the summer of 1861, and remeasured a year later. D'Arrest points out (less than two months later in AN 64, 125, 1865) that three of the nebulae (N4464, N4470, and N4492) were observed by WH and JH, and suggests that the fourth -- this one, N4471 -- is perhaps H II 498 (but that is NGC 4470; this was a confused field until LdR sorted it out -- see Dreyer's note for M 49 in the NGC). D'A goes on with his own observations of the field, noting that he could find neither II 498 nor Schmidt's object at their published discovery positions. There is a considerably fainter compact galaxy about 1.5 arcmin on to the northwest from the stars, but Schmidt has no other objects in his list that are that faint. I doubt that he could have seen it with the 11-inch refractor that he was using in Athens. Finally, this is the only object without a micrometric measurement in Schmidt's table of 27 stars and nebulae around M 49 (he also did not measure a declination for one of the stars, but gives an RA). Precessing his positions for the other nebulae, I found that the declinations are very good, but the RAs are systematically too large by 0.6 to 0.7 seconds of time compared to modern positions (the RA for his comparison star is perhaps affected by proper motion). Unfortunately, this does not help us decide which star (if either) Schmidt mistook for the nebula, as both are much further from his position than this.

===== NGC 4471 48" (5/15/12): this number applies to one of two 14th magnitude stars at 1' separation oriented NNW-SSE, situated ~6' SSW of M49. VCC 1203, a fairly faint galaxy (too faint to have been seen by Schmidt), lies 1.5' NW of the NNW star.